How apps help parents pack a kids lunch

Sudha Parige, a scientist, would wake up at 5am every day to get her daughter ready for school, prepare her breakfast and pack her lunch box. "Not only was it a huge pressure to do everything in a limited time, it was a constant struggle to keep the meals interesting and healthy," she said.

Parige's morning stress is a thing of the past after she discovered the option of sending food to her daughter through sCoolMeal, a subscription service that offers healthy , hygienically-packaged food for children across schools.

"We also participate with parents on a child's nutrition education and learning to make healthy eating choices," said Swaminath Trivady, chief executive of sCoolMeal, who founded the company last year with Stanford Ignite batch mates Bhavana Adarsha and Kishore Acharya.

Food for children is a sensitive domain but food-technology companies like this are breaking barriers with certified kitchens and qualified staff on board. Many families grapple with providing healthy food for their children, especially if both the parents hold demanding jobs. In a scenario like this, being able to buy affordable and healthy meals at the tap of a button is a boon for harrowed parents.

Monkeybox teamMonkeyBox, a similar service founded by ex-IT professionals Sanjay Rao and Sandeep Kannambadi a year ago, services 800 orders a day from 30 schools across South Bengaluru.

Available through an app, parents can choose from menus offering North Indian, South Indian and Continental cuisines for Rs 120-150 a day. "In Bengaluru, most schools don't have canteens and those that do don't have nutritious food," said Rao, who plans to extend to other parts of the city next academic year.

My Kids Lunch Box, which began operations in July , caters to 1,500 students in the city and plans to launch in Chennai and Hyderabad next academic year. "We don't repeat our menu, barring a few items that are a big hit among children," said Samson Prabhakaran, head of operations.

The popularity of such meal services is increasing not only for reasons of nutrition, said Rao. What these services also do is help develop in children a habit for healthy eating and an evolved palate.

Sumuk RN, a parent, said he recently subscribed to a kids meal service so his eight-year-old son could develop a taste for varied cuisines. "As parents, rather than just focus on our typical regional food, we wanted him to eat everything," said Sumuk. "Over three months, I see a change in my son's eating patterns. He has developed a taste for all kinds of food."